Dr. Prithi Kanakamedala (Professor, History) is a scholar of the history of New York City during the 19th century. Her first full-length book Brooklynites: the Remarkable Story of the Free Black Communities that Shaped a Borough (NYU Press, 2024) was released in September 2024. Since then, Dr. Kanakamedala has been busy speaking at various public programs across the city.
She was recently interviewed by All of It host Alison Stewart on WNYC:
As a young person growing up in the ’90s in Liverpool, England, we would hear about the Black Arts Renaissance coming out of Fort Greene [Brooklyn]. All of that self-determination and attitude has deep roots in Brooklyn from the early nineteenth century [that I write about]. We’ll just create and make it for ourselves.
You can listen to the rest of the interview here, read about her work on Gothamist. and read an interview she recently did with the Gotham Center for New York City History.
In addition to her scholarship on nineteenth-century New York City history, Dr. Kanakamedala teaches HIS 20 American Nation, HIS 37 African American History, and HIS 51 The History of New York City. She has taught at Bronx Community College since 2012, and you can often find her curating the bulletin boards in Colston Hall as she serves as the outreach coordinator for the History department. Dr. Kanakamedala is also an active public historian, and works with a range of cultural organization across New York City.
